Air Force Operations and Tests

Aerial images of military aircraft during tests and missions, showcasing fighter planes and bombers in formation, emphasizing teamwork and combat preparation.

The 'Dummy Test Drop' Is A Sure-Fire Method Used By Air Force Parachute Riggers To Prove And Test The Quality Of Their Equipment. Shown Here Is A Parachute Shortly After Being Released From A North American P-51. 78Th Fighter Group Baed In Duxford, Engl

The 'Dummy Test Drop' Is A Sure-Fire Method Used By Air Force Parachute Riggers To Prove And Test The Quality Of Their Equipment. Shown Here Is A Parachute Shortly After Being Released From A North American P-51. 78Th Fighter Group Baed In Duxford, Engl

Like guardian angels over a close-knit formation of silver Consolidated B-24 Liberators, four North American P-51 Mustangs give top cover to the bombers. The bombers flying in ofrmation, give each other mutual protection in case of attack by german

Like a stream of bullets from a gun, Hurricane II fighters of the R.A.F. streak across the desert sky over Egypt. During World War II, fighters formed the main core of the desert air force and had many tasks. They escorted bombers and shipping

A string of 300-lb high explosive bombs (lower center) is leaving one of the ships shown. Anti-aircraft gunners on the ground had not yet opened fire when this photo was made, but began the barrage as the formation moved on unhindered by fighter

Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, 381St Bomb Group, En Route To Bomb Targets In Enemy-Held Territory In Europe.

With one engine on fire, victim of enemy action, an 8th Air Force Liberator banks away from its teammates as it heads for the ground in the Pas de Calais area during a recent attack on Nazi installations on the "Rocket Coast." 392 Bomb Group

Two Martin B-26 Marauder Bombers Of The Ninth Air Force, Drop Their Bombs On A Railroad Bridge Target, 10 Miles From The German Border At Liege, Belgium. Observers Saw Large Explosions In The Target Area Indicating That Fuel Storage Tanks May Also Have B

With Bomb Bay Doors Open, Douglas A-26S Of The 386Th Bomb Group Approach Their Target - An Enemy Installation Somewhere In Germany On 20 April 1945. Note Enemy Flak Near The Planes.

'We Got It', Cried The Bombardier Over The Interphone. And So They Did As The North American B-25 Mitchells Of Tactical Air Force Came Off Their Target At Castelnova Railway Bridge, 60 Miles Northeast Of Verona, Italy, Where They Dropped An Exceptionally

Flying ofrtresses of the 8th Air forces on way to bomb German Target.

8Th Air Force Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses Of The 452Nd Bomb Group Wing Their Way Over Fleecy White Clouds To Strike At The Nazi Airfield At Bordeaux, France. Bordeaux Was Hit And Hit Hard By The 'Flying Forts'. 27 March 1944.

Another Load Of 1000 Lb. Bombs Hurtle Downward Toward A German Held Railroad Bridge In The Po River Valley, As Martin B-26 Marauders Of The 12Th Air Force Score Another Strike Against The Enemy. These "Marauders" Twice Cited For Bombing Rome And Florence

Four Thousand Pounds Of Tnt Plummet Downward From The Bomb Bay Of A 12Th Air Force Martin B-26 Marauder To Land Smack On A Vital Nazi Railroad Bridge In The Po Valley. In The Background Another Flight Of The Twin-Engined Marauders Close Their Bomb Bays.

POUNDING NAZI COMMUNICATIONS IN ITALY to support the Allied land drive from the south. Consolidated b-24 Liberator bombers of the U.S. Army 15th Air Force attack the port to score direct hits on harbor installations, rail and highway communications

On March 16, 1945, Consolidated B-24s of the 494th Bomb Group, released their bombs on a Japanese Bivouac area five miles north of Saragana Bay, Mindanao, Philippine Islands. No anti-aircraft or interception was reported on this mission. Here, one

Consolidated B-24s over Hanover--U.S. 8th AF heavy members, flying deep into Germany again 20 Jan 44, attacked vital war industries at Brunswick and Hanover, Despite heavy clouds which made formation flying difficult, the great air battle attack was

381St Bomb Group Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses Drone Steadily Onward Toward Their Target In Enemy-Occupied Europe.

A hole in the clouds, the target lies beneath. "Bombs gone," shouts the bombardier. As this happened the photographer from another aircraft snapped this remarkable picture. The aircraft is a B-25 Mitchell of the Northwest African Air Forces now

Consolidated B-24 Liberators Fly In Formation While En Route To Bomb Enemy Installations At Battrop, Germany. 11 November 1944. 446Th Bomb Group, 706 Bomb Squadron

Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses on way to axis target from a Russian base.

A Formation Of North American B-25 Mitchells Of The 12Th Af On Way To Attack Enemy Target In Northern Italy.

On March 16, 1945, Consolidated B-24s of the 494th Bomb Group, released their bombs on a Japanese bivouac area five miles north of Saragena Bay, Mindanao, Philippine Islands. No anti-aircraft or interception was reported on this mission. Here, the

A Formation Of Boeing B-29 "Superfortresses"', Based On Guam, Marianas Islands. May 1945.

Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses Of The 15Th Af Head For The German Oil Facilities At Regensburg, Germany On 20 January 1945. Mission Successfully Completed. Attacks By Planes Of The Mediterranean Allied Air Forces On Vital Nazi Production Centers Are Help

Speedy A-20 Havoc light...

First pictures of the...

An armada of Boeing B-17...

Consolidated B-24 Formation Over England.

END OF THE LINE-Bombs from Consolidated B-24 Liberators of the U.S. 8th AAF hurtle earthward during one of their attacks on military installations behind the enemy's lines in France.

When Allied armed forces hit the European continent, the vanguard will be made up of paratroopers and airborne infantry transported by the 9th Air force Troop Carrier Command. In the photo, a glider is shown being towed by a Troop Carrier Command

The war's largest daylight force of Heavy bombers (Boeing B-17s) attack key ports of Germany thru heavy clouds. Route is over blanket of quilted cloud. (Dec 13, 43)

Bombs Released From A Consolidated B-24 Liberators Of The 446Th Bomb Group, Drop On Enemy Installations At Essen, Germany. 21 March 1945.

On the bomb over Toulon, the wing B-17 has opened its bomb bay door and will soon be directly over the target: Nazi submarine pens and repair facilities.

Boeing B-17 'Our Buddy' Of The 452Nd Bomb Group Wings Its Way Toward The German V-2 Launching Sites In Occupied France, As The Heavy Bombers Continued Their Daily Pounding Of Nazi Military Installations, 26 March 1944. (Taken By S/Sgt. Robert Lalumiere.)

Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses Of The 381St Bomb Group En Route To Bomb Enemy Installations In Europe, 13 December 1944, Leave Vapor Trails In The Sky.

A Formation Of Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses Of The 381St Bomb Group, Silhouetted Against The Sky, Wing Their Way Toward The Target Of The Day In Enemy-Occupied Europe.

Formation Of Boeing B-29 Superfortresses Over China.

Aircraft, Burma, India & Bombing,

U.S. Shuttle Bombers Use Russian Base.-Flying Fortresses over Russia. During a shuttle from Italy to new U.S. bases in the Ukraine, U.S.S.R., U.S. Army 15th Air Force bombers pass over a Russian collective farm.

Heavy Concentrations Of Bombs Are Loosed From The Bellies Of 15Th Af Consolidated B-24 Liberators On The Obertraubling Airdrome At Regensburg, Germany, A Base For Jet-Propelled Aircraft. The Attack Took Place On 16 Feb. 1945 With Good Results. Maaf Bomb

AUSTRIA-A Consolidated B-24 Liberator of the 15th Air force comes through an intense and accurate flak barrage over Vienna on October 13, 1944, trailing smoke. 725th Bomb Squadron, 451st Bomb Group.

The Consolidated B-24 'Umbriago' Makes Its Way Through A Flak-Filled Sky As This Photograph Is Taken From The Waist Gunner'S Window Of Another Plane In The Flight, During A Mission On Saarbrucken, Germany On July 16 1944.

Consolidated B-24 Liberators, part of a force of 1,300 U.S. 8th Air Force Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses and B-24 Liberators that struck at nine airfields, March 21, 1945, unload their bombs on the Hesepe airdrome near Osnabruck, Germany. The heavy

Douglas C-47S Towing Cg-4 Gliders On A Routine Mission Somewhere Over France. 12 March 1945.

Douglas C-47 Skytrains, 12 Af Troop Carrier Wing, Loaded With Paratroopers On Their Way For The Invasion Of Southern France, 15 August 1944.

Martin B-26s cooperate by making diversionary attack on Amsterdam/Schipol, Holland.

Almost engulfing this Consolidated B-24 "Liberator" of the 15th Air Force is a column of smoke that rises from the Dubova oil refinery in Czechoslovakia, as heavy bombers attacked the source of the Hun's dwindling oil supply in the "Festung Europe"

Hurrying Withdrawing Japaneses In South China, This B-25 Mitchell Of The Famed 14Th Af Jiggs Squadron On 3 June 1945 Concentrated On Liuchow, At The Junction Of The Lung Valley And The Japanese Great East Asia Corridor South From Kweilin To The French Indo-China Bo

Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortresses" Of The 452Nd Bomb Group Winged Their Way Towards The Target Of The Day - The Nazi Airfield At Chateaudun, France, 28 March 1944, As The 8Th Air Force Bombers Continued To Blast Ever Operational Enemy Factory, Oil Refinery,

After completing initial...

EQUIPMENT AND TROOP GLIDERS OF THE 82ND AIRBORNE DIVISION. .. Plane towing equipment and troops carrying glider. Invasion training under direction of 5th Army, commanded by Lt. Gen. Mark W. Clark. Oujda, Morocco, North Africa

Photo collection Service for army contacts Indonesia. DLC Aviation day military aviation at Kemajoran airport. Fly show. Yacht plane in the air. March 9, 1947. Batavia, Indonesia, Jakarta, Kemajoran, Dutch East Indies

Lockheed P-38 Lightnings on a ground strafing mission in Southern France.

While on a mission to attack axis communications in Italy, the right rudder of the North American B-25 Mitchell bomber of the 1st Tactical Air Force (shown in the extreme left of this photograph) was shot off by German anti-aircraft fire. Unable to

BLAZING LIBERATOR. Ablazing B-24 Liberator of the U.S. Army 15th Air Force, Mediterranean Allied Air Forces, fights its way home from the target against terrific odds. A few seconds after this picture was taken, the left half of the wing tore off

Photo taken from Consolidated B-24 at start of return from Bombing of railway repair shop at Vinh, French Indo China.

Navy Vultee Vengeance In Flight Somewhere Over Europe.

Still afire, Boeing B-17 continues in formation over Foggia.

Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" Of The 381St Bomb Group, Comes In For A Landing At 8Th Air Force Station 167 In England.

Vapor trails from a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress on way to bomb targets in Germany. These "Flying Fortresses" are with the 8th Air Force in England.

Ladd Field, Alaska - P-51 Aircraft 'Ah'M Available,' 62Nd Fighter Squadron, In Flight Over Crazy Mountains, Alaska.

Formation Of Boeing B-29's Over Japanesean. Japaneseanese Factory Below.

North American B-25 Of The Air Apaches Group, Its Savage Snout Gleaming With War-Paint, Makes One Of The Opening Bomb Runs On The Japaneseanese Destroyer Escort ("Frigate") Near Amoy, China On 6 April 1945. 345Th Bomb Group.

This visualization of the greatest invasion armada in history closing in on Sicily, is being released today to the United States armed forces throughout the world. Based on spot news stories sent by war correspondents of the Combined U.S. Press and

Martin Marauders B-26 bombers high in the sky protecting the allied invasion at Anzio, Italy.

Sun rays poking through the clouds over Germany Glint on a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress of the 8th Air Force during the attack on Ludwigshafen, 11/5/44.

A Consolidated B-24 Liberator bomber of a Fightin' 13th AAF formation striking Corregidor, on the eve of invasion by paratroops and amphibious forces, makes a withdrawal after the bomb run. Dense clouds of smoke can be seen rising from the target

Shoran-Equipped North American B-26S Hit Center Of Bologna, Italy, Ammunition Dump Thru 10/10 Clouds On 15 December 1944. 310Th Bomb Group, 57Th Wing, 12Th Af, Flying Out Of Ghisonaccia, Corsia

Douglas C-47's Fly In Formation During 439Th Troop Carrier Group Field Day At An Air Base Somewhere In England. 8 September 1944.

14Th Air Force Republic P-47 Comes In For A Landing At U.S. Airfield In China, After A Strafing Mission Against Japaneseanese Military Installations.

Consolidated B-24S Of The 8Th Air Force Encounter Heavy Flak During A Raid On Siracourt, France On 12 February 1944.

Looking Like A Scale Model, Suspended In Artificial Surroundings, This Martin B-26 Marauder Of Major General Cannon'S 1St Tact. Af Heads Out Across The Sea, Above The Clouds, After Successfully Attacking Fuel Storage Facilities At Savona, Italy, As Medite

Mission Accomplished!! Leaving The Nazi Airfield At Bordeaux, France, Burning Furiously, B-17 Flying Fortresses Of The 452Nd Bomb Group Start The Long Journey Back To England, 27 March 1944. Heavy Bombers Of The 8Th Air Force Continue To Blast At Every O

Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses of the 8th Air Force bombed German airfield at Wiesbaden, west of Frankfurt, 11/10/44 through broken clouds. Attack, made in support of Gen. Patton's 3rd Army advance, was designed to ground German aircraft.

Bombs From North American B-25 Mitchells Of The 12Th Af Head For A Rail Bridge On The Brenner Pass Line In Northern Italy On 4 January 1945 To Help 'Strangle' Hun Communications And Supply Lines To His Forces On The Italian Front.

Low-Flying Tactical Air Force North American B-25 Mitchells Bust Up The Bologna, Motor Transport Area And Silence Defending Gun Positions. The White Smoke Puffs Are From The Gun Emplacements, Which Were Plastered With Incendiary Bombs. Italy.

B-17 "Flying Fortress" going down over area south of Dunkirk, occupied France.

Shown in this remarkable photograph is a Consolidated B-24 Liberator of the 15th Air Force as it heads home after smashing at the Hun's Oil Supply. Vapor trails from preceeding formations blaze the trail homeward to their base in Southern Italy.

The Northrup P-61 'Black Widow' Of The 12Th Af, In Flight Over Italy.

Leaving a towering column of smoke and debris, 8,000 feet high behind it, a Martin B-26 Marauder of the 1st Tactical Air Force heads for home after blasting a Nazi fuel dump at Collecchio in the Po Valley. This pinpoint blasting of German supplies

Bombing Of Enemy Installations By Martin B-26 "Marauders" Of The 12Th Air Force Somewhere In Southern France. 'Pancho And His Reever Rats'

Squadron of Republic P-47 Thunderbolt fighters is now complete. It will fly this tight formation to rendezvous.-ENGLAND

Snow-Like Vapor Trails Stream Behind Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses Of The 381St Bomb Group En Route To Bomb Enemy Installations At Frankfurt, Germany On 24 March 1944.

The Consolidated B-24 Liberator 'Bolivar' Flies Towards Harmon Field , Guam, Marianas Islands On 6 June 1945.

This remarkable photograph, taken on a Boeing B-29 strike over Tokyo, Japanesean, shows Sgt. J.R. Krantz, Hickory Point, Tenn., a waist gunner on a 21st Bomber Command Superfortress, dangling from his plane five miles up in the air over the Japanese capital.

JUNGLE RESCUE COMPLETED-1st Lt. Stanley J. Hillock of Los Angeles, California, who was injured in a Vultee L-5 crash on 7 April 1947 in the Sierre Madre Mountains, is strapped to a litter basket at the side of a 13th Air Force helicopter.

Smoke From Fires At Kassel, Germany, Bursts Thru Overcast As 8Th Air force Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses Leaves Target, 28 Feb. 1945.

Douglas C-47S Towing Cg-4 Gliders On A Routine Mission Somewhere Over France. 12 March 1945.

Anefo photo collection. Threesome Fairey Firefly Mk.iv Hunting bombers of the MLD (Marine Aviation Service). December 19, 1949

Flames jumped to 600 feet and smoke rose to 7,000 feet when North American B-25 Mitchells of the First Tactical Air Force Successfully attacked a huge Axis fuel dump in the Po Valley near Ostiglia, 65 miles southwest of Venice, Italy, drastically

Kuma class cruiser taking...

A Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" Of The 322Nd Bomb Squadron, 91St Bomb Group, Drones Steadily On Toward Its Target Somewhere In Europe. December 1943.

Aerial attack on Robot Bomb Fuel Plant-One of the attacking Boeing B-17 Flying Forts of the 8th USAAF passes over the burning target area during an attack on the hydrogen peroxide plant at Peenemunde, Germany about 60 miles northwest of Stettin.

High Above The English Countryside, North American P-51 "Mustangs" Of The 350Th Fighter Squadron, 353Rd Fighter Group, Fly In Close Formation. February 1945.

Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses 'This Is It' In Foreground, And Other Fortresses Of The 381St Bomb Group Encounter Flak Opposition As They Approach The Target At Mainz, Germany, 30 Dec 1944.

Hits Are Scored On The Regensburg Oil Storage Facilities In Germany As Another String Of Bombs From Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses Of The 15Th Af, Head For The Target. The Forts Attacked This Important Source Of German Oil On 18 Dec. 1944, Scoring Direct

Kuma class cruiser taking...

"LOOK AT THE BIRDIE"-U.S. XV AAF. Without suspecting the attention they are receiving below, U.S.A.A.F. Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses parade before a newsreel camera on an Army combat camera unit as they return from a mission in the

These "Flying Fortresses" of the 8th Air Force are flying down a vapor trail "road" that leads to Brunswick, Germany's important producer of Luftwaffe fighters and bombers on the River Oder. At times the road became rough and some of the formations

ON FIRE BUT STILL DEADLY-Although one wing of this Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is afire the plane's pilot manages to keep it in formation while the bombardier drops his bombs on Berlin.

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